1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an additive system creating a foaming head on a portion of hot coffee, and, more particularly, to a controlled foam for hot coffee using an additive without any substantial change in flavor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Several patents descriptive of effervescent preparations or similar food additives are known to the inventor hereof. These patents are as follows:
______________________________________ ITEM NO. U.S. PAT. NO. INVENTOR ISSUE DATE ______________________________________ 1 1,450,865 Pelc 04/03/23 2 2,868,646 Schapiro 01/13/59 3 3,061,445 Stanish 10/30/62 4 3,441,417 Feldman et al 04/29/69 5 4,303,684 Pitchon et al 12/01/81 6 4,310,560 Doster 01/12/82 7 4,438,147 Hedrick, Jr. 03/20/84 8 4,579,742 Lavie 04/01/86 9 4,746,527 Kuypers 05/24/88 ______________________________________
In considering the various known patents, U.S. Pat. No. 2,868,646 issued to Schapiro on Jan. 13, 1959 teaches an effervescent drink concentrate made up of two dry constituents. The first constituent is a sugar-acid crystal blend made up of 3-10 parts of crystal sugar to 1 part edible organic acid, by weight, preferably 4 parts sucrose to 1 part citric acid. A film-forming material, which may be made up of certain gums, forms a water soluble protective hull about the sugar-acid mixture. A sugar-carbonate crystal blend makes up the second constituent. This blend is formed by mixing 0.8-1.2 parts of an inorganic carbonate, preferably sodium bicarbonate, per part of acid and the balance being sugar--approximately 8 to 12 parts of sugar if 4 parts were used in the sugar-acid blend. The teaching further includes a film-forming material to protect the blend of constituents and a readily soluble hull structure to protect the crystals against premature reaction. In Schapiro, upon the mixture being introduced into cold water, a foam is produced by gas evolution.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,310,560 issued to Doster et al. on Jan. 12, 1982, teaches a method of producing a porous pelletized food product. An initial dry blend is prepared which may include sugars and starches. A chemical leavening system comprising sodium bicarbonate, and possibly sodium aluminum sulfate and monocalcium phosphate as leavening acids, is described with amounts of 1% to 5% by weight of the system making up the dry blend. Proteinaceous materials make up 5%-45% by weight of the mix. This patent teaches a mix, which is not added to hot water, but is rather subjected to the application of hot air to form porous pellets to be used in crunchy food products.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,303,684 issued to Pitchon et al. teaches a rapidly soluble sweetener. The sweetener composition preferably contain 15 to 65% fructose and may contain up to 80% sucrose. Dextrinized starch is present at a preferred level of 15% to 30%, but may be as low as 5%. The carbonating agent may include sodium bicarbonate. The patent also teaches that such compositions have a wide range of utilities, but its use as a sweetener in a dry mix for forming a cold, carbonated beverage.
Although several patents known by the inventor teach the use of sugar, starches and sodium bicarbonate, e.g. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,310,560 and 3,441,417; teach the use of releasing agents, e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 4,310,560; and teach inducing foaminess, e.g. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,868,646 and 4,458,147, the composition hereinbelow for use as an additive in hot beverages, specifically coffee, is not taught. There is further distinctiveness here in that the art of dry effervescent mixtures for use as beverage concentrates and the art of foamed toppings using protein, fatty acid, and foam stabilizer mixtures are here applied to thermally sensitive and flavor sensitive applications. Further, none of the known additives are described as forming a skin similar to espresso or Cuban coffee prepared using a steam generator equipped coffee maker.
Turning now to the particular beverage that is the subject hereof, namely coffee, additional background information is provided to enhance the understanding of its position and special needs in terms of related food chemistry and food technology. After indicating that the coffee bean is from a species of the madder family called Coffea Arabica, the standard food reference Larousse Gastronomique by Prosper Montagne (Crown Publishers, Inc.; N.Y., 1961, ed.) provides the following:
The best varieties of coffee had for a long time been those which came from Arabia, known as Moka or Yemen coffee, as well as coffee from the Bourbon (or Reunion) Island and Martinique. The names have been preserved in the trade to distinguish three types of coffee, although the designation in no way implies its origin. The three types are:
Moka--small irregular grains, yellowing in colour and convex on both sides.
Bourbon--medium-sized grains, yellowing, oblong.
Martinique--the biggest grains, rounded at the ends, greenish in colour.
Like wine, coffee gives the greatest production in the plains but the best qualities come from the higher parts of the torrid zone, particularly from Central America (Guatemala, Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica), as well as from the northern part of South America (Venezuela and Colombia) whose products are always rated among the first . . . . The coffee plant is a large evergreen shrub with dark shiny leaves. The cherry-like fruit is soaked, de-pulped, dried and the seed is then polished to remove the parchment-like husk and outer filament. The seeds are then classified as to size and ripeness. Coffees of various origins are usually blended in the trade in different proportions. When green, coffee keeps for a long time, provided it is protected from damp; keeping it, in fact, improves it. It is entirely devoid of smell. To release the aroma, coffee has to be roasted . . . Well-roasted coffee should be brown, of varying degrees of darkness, but never black. If not sufficiently roasted, it produces a colourless infusion, and is rough and astringent. If over-roasted, it produces a black infusion, bitter and unpleasant. During industrial roasting process a small quantity of sugar molasses or various other products is sometimes added, to "coat" the berries. This coating gives the berries a better colour, a more shiny appearance, and prevents the loss of aroma . . . . After roasting, coffee does not keep its aroma for long; it is, therefore, better not to roast or not to buy it all roasted in quantities exceeding one's needs, and it is advisable to keep it in jars and tins with well-fitting lids. Grinding is the last operation through which coffee has to go before being actually made. Ideally, coffee should be ground immediately before being made, as ground coffee quickly loses it aroma.
Other food chemistry sources indicate that coffee contains an alkaloid, the stimulant caffeine or 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine, and a fraction, known as "caffeol" that supplies the flavor and aroma. With this background in mind, it is readily seen that coffee as a hot beverage is a delicately balanced chemical system in which an improper additive system can quite easily unbalance the flavor and aroma. If this delicate balance is not considered, then, all the extremely careful handling (or nuturing) that is experienced during processing the plant, blending the beans, roasting, grinding, and brewing is for naught.
In the past, elaborate apparatuses have been employed to produce foams for Cuban or espresso coffees, the most popular of which is an espresso machine attributed to Gaggia (Italy; 1946) and based on a low pressure steam generator and injection system. Using such a machine the prepared espresso or Cuban coffee leaves a thick, well-defined skin behind. The additive formulation presented hereinbelow provides a similar effect by creating a wall or skin on the top of the foam which has the characteristic of adhering to the side of the espresso coffee cup.